In Lieu: Chapter 2
by takidaka
Summary: It's EXTREMELY late, but here's the update/finale for this story. Even though it's massively out of season, I hope you enjoy! I'll be posting the first few chapters of my new fic on here sometime soon. P.S. - Check out my tumblr (takidaka./tagged/hunter writes) for my latest updates and writings.


p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"strong style="color: #000000;"em style="color: #555555;"Chapter 2:/em BAZ/strong/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Half a year later and he's still broken./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I really can't blame him. If I were stripped of my magic, given I was still a vampire afterwards, I'd probably would've ended my life long ago. Nothing can quite replace that feeling soaring through your veins, especially when all the life has already been sucked out of them./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"That's also speaking as if he and I had never gotten together, though. I don't know what I'd do in that case, to be honest./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"But I had hoped, at least, that Simon would've started picking up the pieces by now. Instead, he's just left them in the middle of the floor to cut his feet on. I wish I could be the metaphorical broom that would sweep it all away./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Especially on days like this, when we're out and about, together, just being free. We do it much more often since graduation, and it's been nothing but good. Heartache aside, anyway. He's happy as I've seen him in a while, eagerly peering into sparkling shops and stores all twinkling with the effects of the holiday season. I almost can't smell the smoke on him anymore. (Granted, I forced him to take a bath this morning and basically sterilized his skin. Among other things.)/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Anyway. At the moment we're strolling through the Cater-Corner: a long, popular street about an hour north of Watford, where many of the richer families come to buy designer gifts. (Speaking of designer: I just bought new robes. Handmade Diana Wynne Jones, thank you.) And while I pop up here fairly often to run errands, this is Snow's first time even seeing a street of this size or grandeur, so he's both occupied and overwhelmed. It also doesn't help that everybody in the living wizard world knows about our relationship by now–especially those who know me personally–and their eyes widen as they see us walking along snowy banks, hand-in-hand./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"More particularly, though, I think they're surprised that they don't feel much of anything from Simon Snow anymore. I haven't told him that, though. But the hand-holding also factors in./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Baz, what's that?" He asks, pointing at an outlet store made of chiseled marble./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""It's a shoe store."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""That doesn't look like a shoe store."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Just what do you suppose it is, then?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""It looks like a bank or something. I don't know."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""What, Wells Fargo makes shoes now?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""More like Gringotts. I mean, emlook/em at the fabric on those. Bloody hell. Are those emmade/em of silver?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""No, platinum. They're Seven-League Boots."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""And those have to be made of extremely precious metals?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Touché," I reply, suppressing a smile./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Grinning, he shakes his golden head. He's got my forest green jumper on underneath his black peacoat, paired with dark denim trousers, gloves, and a colorful scarf around his neck. And he's not aware of it, but I've been mumbling spells to wrap small lights around his tail. He has no idea that he's essentially a walking Christmas tree./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"But for someone with a wintry name, he's not very fond of the cold, and it shows in the way that he's pressed against my side as we walk, clasping my hand like a moth to a lamp. Even though I bought him the thickest, wooliest peacoat I could find. (I basically scalped a sheep, no less.) Still, it's nice to have him so close to me. My own dark red attire contrasts nicely with his./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Dear Merlin, emlook at this!/em" Snow exclaims suddenly, fluttering over to the window. As he pulls me along, I glance up and see a large wooden sign hanging down, scrawled upon with the title emBouncing Boffin's Magickal Bakery/em./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Look at those, Baz! Look at them! emLook at all the different kinds!/em"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I follow his pointed finger through the window. Dozens of scones, all different colors, line the inside of a baker's counter. Simon's nose and hands are pressed up against the glass, eagerly, like a puppy waiting to be fed./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Sighing–and really struggling to hide my smile–I take his wrist and pull him away. "One of these days, Snow, you're going to get fat."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""So what? Are you gonna stop liking me?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Well, for starters, I don't emlike/em you now," I say, trying to distract him from the window. I imagine him with chubby cheeks, a red nose, a pudgier stomach. Never again the skeleton that walked into Watford every year on the first day of term./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I curse myself for feeding this morning, because I can feel the warm blood rising in my cheeks. He's made me so soft. "And I will never emstop/em disliking you, Simon."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Before he has time to think about what I said, I push open the large doors to the bakery and pull him inside./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"It's as if I've let loose a bull in a china shop./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"The boy tears away from me and charges towards the glass counter, asking to sample flavor after flavor. The exasperated counter lady struggles to keep up with his eagerness from the very start, and she runs to Simon's every whim and command without much rhyme or reason./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Ma'am, what's in that one? The purple one?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Oh, that's lavender and honey, dear–"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Is that raspberry?" He asks incredulously./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Yes, it's–"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""My emgoodness/em, you have apple cinnamon! And what about lemon–is that embutterscotch/em?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"The other customers, previously enjoying the smooth, peaceful atmosphere of the bakery, sit staring at Simon and his flailing hands. A few people step into the shop behind us, see his exuberance, and quietly retreat back outside. Meanwhile, I wait at the cash register, trying not to laugh as he indecisively starts to make his choices./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Baz," he suddenly says, turning to me./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Yes, love?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""How many can I get?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I stare into his eager eyes for a few moments before I break into a snigger. I can't help myself. "I'm limiting you at two of each flavor."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"The grin that crosses his face is enough to melt steel. He begins pointing this way and that, speaking in loud flows and cadences, thoroughly overwhelming the poor bakery lady. She starts to feel so swamped that she calls another employee to help, a young man who almost too flabbergasted by the presence of Simon to reasonably assist her with his order./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Is he yours?" I hear behind me at some point amidst the chaos. The voice is familiar; rough but rich, like an uncut gem. It's almost as if I'm hearing Christian Bale speak through unsweetened chocolate./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Unable to pin the timbre down, I turn and find myself face-to-face with none other than Nicodemus./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I frown quite violently, stretching the still-cold skin on my cheeks. My fingers clench at my sides. "emUgh/em. By Morgana, what do emyou/em want?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Easy there, killer," he grunts, holding both hands up in front of him. "I'm just saying, you may want to control your boy there. It's not unlike people in this area to report peculiarities."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I'm still grimacing at him when I respond. "They're in the presence of Simon Snow and Basilton Pitch. Peculiarities are unavoidable. I'm just glad he's focused on something that makes him cheery. And I'll beemquite/em unhappy if you or anyone else does emanything/em to disrupt that."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Fair enough," Nicodemus shrugs. "But, anyway, I've got some news that may interest you. I've heard that you've been poking around here and there for some information."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Info?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Immortality and all that."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""And how do you know that?" I ask suspiciously, scrutinizing his face./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""You think there aren't vampires lurking around be British Museum watching you throw the emTwilight/em series into your bag? And to think that you graduated at the top of your class."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"My grimace grows more severe./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""I'm just saying," he grumbles, brushing thin air off of his jacket. "Ask stupid questions, get stupid answers. Anyway. I think it's right time you know that no, vampires are not immortal. Why else would you still be growing and aging like a normal human boy?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""How do you know?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Tell me, have you ever seen an extremely old vampire?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Not besides you."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"He rolls his eyes up to the ceiling. "Bloody hell, Pitch, I'm trying to do you a favor–"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""What exactly did you expect ? Sunshine and rainbows coming out of my ass at the sight of you? And why are you telling me this?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Nicodemus's eyes fall to my knees, then further to the floor. "A few reasons, to be honest. Most importantly because you and Goldilocks of the Scones fought for my sister until the very end."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I blink, taken a bit aback. "Well… We didn't really fight for emher/em."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""But you fought emcloser/em than anyone else. Including myself," he says firmly. "That's all I have to say about that. I've overstayed my invitation. I'm done following you two around, so I'll be on my way after this." Nicodemus then pulls a small bottle out of the pocket on his coat. It's clear glass, round and sharp, surrounded with tendrils of glass twisted into a shape that catches the sunlight of the windows./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Or, rather, the light that's coming from within the bottle./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Here," he finally says, handing the object to me. "My final thanks. From what I hear, your boy over there may find this quite useful."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""What is it?" I ask, cautiously taking the bottle from his calloused hands./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""It's a special type of vial made out of some sort of alchemist's crystal." He gestures to my hand. "It collects magic in small doses from the atmosphere. Kind of the way the Humdrum did, except without deathly catastrophic results because it has a sort of limit. They used to be common in the old days when children had trouble gathering enough magic to complete certain spells. Now, Snow can pull the cork out and use whatever little spell comes to his mind, regardless of his lacking."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I'm confounded to the point of almost dropping the piece. "Really?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Nicodemus lifts an eyebrow, unimpressed. "No, I'm just fucking with you. That's my sole purpose in life, Baz, to mess with your head." He frowns. "In all honesty, though, unless you're trying to shoot down the moon, I don't know of much of any spells it can't perform. I've been using it since I lost my wand."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I'm still staring at him, I realize, when I pull my slacking jaw back up into place./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Yeah. So. Merry Christmas and Kwanzaa and all that, I suppose. See you around." And then he roughly clasps my shoulder, nods, and turns right back out the door. "Thanks again, kid."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I stare at his figure until he turns the street corner and vanishes. Then I peer down at the small bottle, not even big enough to be the length of my thumb. /p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"The relic that can bring Simon Snow's magic emback/em./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Baz!" Simon calls close behind me./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I jump in surprise and nearly drop the bottle, but fumble to catch and hide it in my pocket before he can see. "Simon?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"He's grinning ear-to-ear when I turn around, holding a massive box of scones to his chest. "You're not planning on lunch still, are you? Because I've already eaten six of these."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I shake my head. "No, that's fine. I'm not all that hungry, anyway."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""I guess you could call it killing two birds with one scone." Snow stifles a guffaw./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Glaring at him, I smack his shoulder. "Don't even emstart/em, Simon."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"He just laughs, smiles, and leads me out the door, happy as a kid on Christmas morning. Absolutely oblivious to the world around him./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);" /p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Later, we're walking down the street again, this time with a box holding around three dozen scones–give or take the half that's been eaten by the boy that's been ceaselessly munching on them./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Hey, Baz." He's following behind me, grasping the hem of my jacket, speaking through a bite of bread./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I turn and raise my eyebrows at him. "Hm?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Were you telling me that you love me?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""emHuh/em?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""You know. Before we went in the bakery."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I take a large breath to recollect my words. "Well, I-I don't know. Was I?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Baz–"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Annoyed, I shoot him a look. "You tell me, Mr. My-Name-Is-Simon-Snow-and-I-Can't-Handle-Weather-Colder-Than-Boiling. We might as well call you Lavaboy the Weak."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""You mean 'Loverboy'?" He asks, smirking./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"Grimacing, I say, "You really have to emstop/em these awful puns. I'm going to physically assault you. Besides, I know what I said. If you can't decipher simple English yourself, maybe we should send you back to elementary school."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I hear a snort behind me. One of his warm hands takes mine./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"When I glance back at him and see his dorky grin, I feel fire in my stomach. Again. Every time. He's going to burn out my insides at this rate./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I don't care. For him, I'd fall into the sun./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Where else are we going?" Snow asks through a mouthful of a differently-flavored pastry./p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""I dunno. I figured we could just shop around and look for Christmas presents for everyone."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Sounds good to me." He squeezes my fingers. "Can we go play with the Seven-League Boots Penelope's been talking about? The ones not cast out of platinum?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""I thought you'd never ask."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);"I hear his laugh, and then feel him kiss the top of my hand. "Hey."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""Hm?"/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""You make me really happy."/p  
p style="color: #555555; font-family: calibri; font-size: 11px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);""I ought to," I reply, feeling myself smile despite my best efforts. "I'm an absolute pleasure."/p 


End file.
